i'm rico hizon in singapore, the headlines: donald trump plays host to japan's prime minister as he gives more details about the planned summit with kim jong—un. japan and ourselves are locked and we are very unified on the subject of north korea. syria says international inspectors have arrived in douma, the scene of the alleged chemical attack in which dozens of people were reported killed. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme: stormy daniels speaks out again, this time revealing a sketch of the man she says threatened her to keep quiet about having sex with donald trump. and meet the chinese scientists leading the way towards the ultimate form of green energy, nuclearfusion. live from our studios in singapore and london. this is bbc world news.

it's newsday. it's 6am in singapore, ”pm in london and 6pm in florida, where donald trump has said the us is having high level direct talks with north korea ahead of a planned summit with kim jong—un. mr trump, who's hosting the japanese prime minister shinzo abe, said five locations were being considered for the meeting. president trump said the summit would take place in earlyjune if things went well or maybe even before that. japan and ourselves are locked and we are very unified on the subject of north korea. we will probably be, depending on various meetings and conversations we'll be having... meetings with kim jong—un very soon.

that'll be taking place probably in earlyjune or properly before that assuming goes, everything goes well, things may not go well and we won't have the meeting and we'll continue to go along this very strong part we've taken. earlier i spoke to the bbc‘s barbara plett usher in palm beach, florida where the two leaders are meeting. i started by asking whether, given mr abe's previously hardline position on north korea, he had any reservations about the upcoming summit between mr trump and mr kim? it was something he hadn't been warned about and you know japan has a hard—line approach to north korea, like the trump administration, he thought they were on the same page. he asked for this meeting to make sure they still were and to make sure they still were and to make sure they still were and to make sure the japanese security concerns wouldn't be downplayed if there is a meeting and americans do meet one—on—one with the north koreans. the early indications from this two—day meeting our mr trump has

reassured him or is going to reassured him or is going to reassure him, and mr abe himself did say, yes, mrtrump was reassure him, and mr abe himself did say, yes, mr trump was courageous to ta ke say, yes, mr trump was courageous to take this step and he did say there was progress from any summit towards verifiable and complete denuclearisation. but both leaders are facing a lot of pressure, barbara, at home, with mr barbet facing cronyism claims and mr trump is facing allegations of russian meddling in his favour? yes, they're not having a very good week. mr trump has seen a number of his opponents on—air this week, the former director of the fbi james comey has published a sort of tell all damaging book and then you have the pawn actress stormy daniels, who has also come out against trump in a number of ways and she's been speaking on television and his personal lawyer is under investigation or has been raided by the fbi so he is quite rattled by

all of this. i suspect a week here at mar—a—lago is a place to retreat for him. i think for mr abe it's a little bit more urgent because he is facing these cases back home, the allegations that he helped out friends from a number of educational institutions by giving them government... letting them benefit from government decisions with regards to land purchases. that has really become quite a serious issue for him in terms of the opposition that that has generated so he does need to come back from this summit with something to show from it. barbara plett—usher from palm with something to show from it. barbara plett—usherfrom palm beach in florida and we will bring you more updates when we get them. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. syrian state television says an international chemical weapons inspection team has arrived in douma, the town east of damascus where an alleged chemical gas attack is said to have killed dozens of people. our chief international correspondent lyse doucet is in aleppo where official celebrations

for syria's national day are underway. aleppo's ancient ramparts now a monument to president assad's staying power. once in rebel hands, once the scene of the war‘s worst fighting, which divided the city and cost so many lives. now, for the government, a site of celebration, chosen notjust to mark syria's independence, but to show the world the war is going its way. i could not stand here, you could not stand here, we would have been sniped or beheaded. and this is... look, look, it became, you know, normal again. tonight, inside this fortress, soldiers strike up national anthem to a crowd of syrian elite and invited guests, some from abroad. entertained by songs and dance of a syria gone by. a syria from before the war. stirring old emotions and defiance too. translation: it's a big celebration

for aleppo and all syria. we are very happy and celebrating this day. you can see the people around here, we are the winners. god protect the president. translation: we are celebrating two things, our independence and surviving the air strikes, through the leadership of bashar al—assad. tonight, government supporters rally around theirflag, their president. in a city where so many have lost so much, and for those forced to flee, even the city they once called home. also making news today: the rise in the number of reported cases of sexual abuse against children

in india has been described as a national emergency by the country's nobel laureate, kailash satyarthi. there've been protests across india after reports of a series of child rape cases over the last ten days. a report by mr satyarthi's foundation says more than 100,000 such cases are pending in the indian courts. official figures show that nearly nineteen thousand child rape cases were registered in 2016. the amount of opioids that can be manufactured by drug—makers each year are to be limited by the us drug enforcement administration. it's a further attempt to tackle a deadly epidemic that plaguing the country. there was a 30% rise in opioid overdoses in the us last year. the us transport authorities say one person has died after a jet engine failed on a southwest airlines plane. a relative of one of those on board said a woman was partially sucked out of a window after it was pierced

by debris from the engine. starbucks is to close 8,000 of its cafes in the us for a day next month to train 175,000 staff members in racial awareness. the move follows protests over last week's arrest of two black men in a starbucks in philadelphia. they were waiting to meet friends but staff called in the police, alleging trespass when the pair refused to leave. and these zookeepers in prague have found a novel way of feeding some of their critically endangered birds. there are currently six javan green magpies at the zoo. they're being fed with the help of a hand puppet resembling an adult of the species, beak and all. javan green magpies are among the rarest birds on the planet, its estimated that only around 100 remain in the world. malaysia's upcoming general election

is turning into a battle between bitter rivals and former allies. at the age of 92, former prime minister mahathir mohamad is the opposition‘s lead choice to depose former protege, najib razak, in what could be the most tightly—contested poll for decades. the current leader also faces a challenge from anwar ibrahim, who's currently serving a five—year prison sentence. ei sun oh is a former political secretary to najib and hejoins us live from kuala lumpur. thank you forjoining us. does the former prime minister, mahathir mohamad, stand a chance to depose the incumbent prime minister,

najibullah zadran, despite his age? i think it would be a very difficult thing for doctor mahathir to replace najib razak in the next election, not just so najib razak in the next election, notjust so much because of his age but the election is such that the ruling coalition would have a lot of so—called incumbency advantage is. for example, the constituencies that delineated in such a way that it favours heavily the incumbent government —— advantages —— the constituencies are delineated. as well as the possession of various resources , well as the possession of various resources, such as promises of developments and so on, which could sway a lot of rural voters. but mr ei sun oh there are also incumbency disadvantages because over the last three years the administration of prime minister razak has been

clouded with corruption controversies, won't this work against him? i think there are various series of unsettling, shall we say, scandals and controversies. i think that will serve to consolidate the urban vote which, in any case, would have gone to the opposition. they have very little inroads into the rural areas. they have very little access to the rural voters because those rural voters are primarily concerned with their needs for further development and the betterment of their livelihoods. mroh, let's the betterment of their livelihoods. mr oh, let's talk about the overall leadership in malaysia. in more than 30 years there have only been 3‘ end ministers, mahathir mohamad, abdullah badawi and magic razak. is there any room for young readers, young and politicians to rise in malaysia in politics and lead your

country? -- najeen razak. there is some room for that but unfortunately a lot of malaysians voters, and primarily the rural voters, they still have this, shall i say, semifeudal mentality, whereby they would like to worship certain, shall we say, great leaders. while you only have so many great leaders, for example, doctor mahathir, who has led the country for more than two decades and so on, people tend to worship them, najeen razak and so on. for young people to breakthrough they have to make their names known. so far they have made their names known primarily only to the urban, upper and middle class voters. thank you so much for your views on the upcoming malaysians general elections, mr oh, a former political secretary to najib joining elections, mr oh, a former political secretary to najibjoining us elections, mr oh, a former political secretary to najib joining us from kuala lumpar.

the porn star who says she had an affair with donald trump twelve years ago has said she hopes that by going public, she can convince other women to confront those who've bullied or intimidated them. interviewed on abc television, stormy daniels said she, her husband and young daughter were tired of being threatened. katty kay reports. i'm sorry, i'm done. i'm done being bullied. mita stormy daniels, a pawn star allegedly... now prime antagonist of the 45th president of the it is. she was composed, articulate and confident. stormy went on midmorning talkshow tv today to explain her 2006 relationship with donald trump —— president of the united states. it was not prostitution, there was no solicitation, no agreement and no money exchanged. this woman is now in the eye of an almighty legal storm over whether mr trump's

personal lawyer michael cohen violated campaign finance laws when he paid her $130,000 shortly before the 2016 collection. and because this colourful cast of characters wouldn't be complete without a tv host, enter the news that one sean haliti, fox news anchor and number one trump supporter, has now also been revealed as a client of mr cowen. michael cohen never represented me in any legal matter, i never retain his services, never received an invoice, i never paid michael cohen for legal fees. i received an invoice, i never paid michael cohen for legalfees. i did have occasional brief conversations with michael cohen, who is a great attorney, about legal questions i had or i was looking for input and perspective. it's all very cosy except that miss daniels claims she and her young daughter was threatened by a man she says look like this, threatened not to reveal her affair with donald trump. he looked at my daughter and i remember

him saying, oh, it's a beautiful little girl, it would be a shame if something happened to her mum. we don't know the legal implications of this appearance but mr trump would be wise not to underestimate this woman. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: a film star kidnapped by north korea dies at the age of 91, her extraordinary story. forced to feed into the propaganda machine. pol pot, one of the century's greatest mass murderers, is reported to have died of natural causes. he and the khmer rouge movement he led were responsible for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million cambodians. there have been violent protests in indonesia, where playboy has gone on sale for the first time. traditionalist muslim leaders have expressed disgust.

the magazine's offices have been attacked and its editorial staff have gone into hiding. it was clear that paula's only contest was with the clock, and as for a sporting legacy, paula radcliffe's competitors will be chasing her new world—best time for years to come. quite quietly, but quicker and quicker, she is seenjust to slide away under the surface and disappear. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm kasia maderain london. our top stories: japan's prime minister praises donald trump for his courage in agreeing to meet

north korea's kim jong—un. shinzo abe is at trump's resort in florida, his second meeting with the president. syria says international inspectors have been visiting the scene of the alleged chemical attack in syria. the united states says that's not true. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the new york times talks about 10—minute justice in iraq and shows a photo of suspected isis fighters. thousands — along with their relatives — have been rounded up by iraqi authorities with many being sentenced to death in short trials criticised by the un. the situation in yemen is the lead story for the gulf news where the saudi—led coalition has warned houthi rebels of a ‘painful‘ response if they mount new attacks on saudi arabia with drones. and the china daily features siyan the sniffer dog who is retiring after 11 years of service at shanghai's ports.

his well trained nose has detected thousands of smuggled items including live turtles and endangered plants. his employers are looking for a family to adopt him and care for him in his old age. a group of scientists in china is taking the lead in the quest for the ultimate form of green energy, nuclear fusion. if mastered, it could provide virtually limitless amounts of power without the waste of existing nuclear reactors. nobody has yet been able to turn nuclear fusion into electricity, but our china correspondent stephen mcdonell has been to meet the team which has come closer than anyone else. it

than anyone else. costs more than $15,000 a day just it costs more than $15,000 a day just to turn on this machine. and it may hold the key to a inexhaustible energy and unlike existing nuclear reactors, virtually no waste at all. many are trying to crack nuclear fusion but with limited success but nobody has come as far as this chinese team. the giant encased metal doughnut known by the acronym east has been quietly breaking records and we have been given rare access to it. translation: fusion is going to require huge breakthroughs from scientists and engineers as well is a lot of financial backing from the government. existing reactors use nuclear fission which splits and at, leaving highly toxic radioactive waste that must be

stored for tens of thousands of yea rs. stored for tens of thousands of years. fusion instead joins two nuclei and powerful magnets control the massive energy it creates. but even these scientists can only deliver a stable reaction for around 100 seconds. when china's president came, he wanted to know about the dangers of this technology so he asked what they told him. translation: fusion reactor is quite safe compared to a fission reactor. magnetic confinement is controllable fusion. i can shut down the power supply and it's perfectly safe, they will not be any nuclear disaster. when you come here, and see this giant machine, it's still hard to believe that on the inside, its being heated up to what's said to be four times the temperature of the sun's core and that this can be

sustained. admittedly, it's only for a very, very short time at the moment every year, it gets longer and longer and yet to be talking about the goals which are ten times as long as what is being achieved now at temperatures of 100 million celsius, frankly incredible. they hope to soon design a fully fledged fusion test reactor capable of generating electricity but it could still be decades till cities are lit up still be decades till cities are lit up with this technology. a south korean actress, who was once kidnapped by north korea and forced to make films, has died. choi eun—hee was 91. at the height of her fame, in the 1970s, she and her ex—husband, a successful film director, were abducted on the orders of then leader—in—waiting kim jong—il. a film fanatic, he forced the pair to make dozens of films for north korea, to try and boost its industry. after eight years, they were allowed to travel to vienna to promote one

of the films, and sought asylum at the us embassy. well, earlier i spoke to anna broinowski, an award—winning filmmaker, who not only knows a lot about choi eun—hee story, but has herself worked in north korea, and experienced first hand the country's propaganda machine. she told me about eun—hee's life. look, an extraordinary life. she was already a big movie star in south korea when she was allegedly kidnapped by kim jong korea when she was allegedly kidnapped by kimjong il and the north korean regime and then she became a movie star over there, from 1978 until 1986, where she starred ina 1978 until 1986, where she starred in a succession of movies, and this is where it is really weird, the movies were directed by her ex—husband who was also allegedly kidnapped. between them, they made seven movies and other movies were

consulted on by her ex—husband, shin sang—ok. consulted on by her ex—husband, shin sang-ok. you say she was kidnapped twice so what is going on? did she go to north korea voluntarily? we can never tell with north korea. somehow the truth is between fox news and the propaganda emanating from pyongyang. all i can say is that i'm going to sit on the fence with this one. i interviewed shin sang—ok‘s former agent in seoul anti— live is there with a treasured archive of shin sang—ok‘s films which is not allowed to show in south korea because the south korean government feels that positive about north korea but a japanese journalist wrote a book called fictional image when he claimed that

shin sang—ok and choi eun—hee went to north korea —— north korea willingly because they had run out of money to make films in south korea but i should add that i'm not making a conclusion on that, i thought it would be an interesting thing to reveal, that with north korea, the truth is always with many options. you spoke to her agent but why won't you able to speak to choi eun—hee herself? i'm sorry? you spoke to her agent but you are not able to speak to choi eun—hee herself? yes, when i was researching my documentary aim high in creation about north korean cinema propaganda, i tried about north korean cinema propaganda, itried hard about north korean cinema propaganda, i tried hard to interview choi eun—hee in south korea but she was incapacitated in hospital and that is how i ended up speaking to her agent. one thing that struck me about choi eun—hee is

her bravery. while she was in captivity in north korea, and they we re captivity in north korea, and they were kept in gulag is the fourth kim jong il allowed them out to make movies, she went to the foreigners only store in pyongyang, took a tape recorder and recorded the dear leader without him realising. him having a rant about how north korean filmmakers were inferior and this is why choi eun—hee and shin sang—ok we re why choi eun—hee and shin sang—ok were in the country, to revolutionise and upgrade the industry and she had the smarts and audacity to records that and she brought it out with her when she escaped so in terms of, were they kidnapped or did they go their willingly? i have to say from all my research, i would have to go towards stating they were kidnapped. that's all for now — stay with bbc world news. hello there, good morning. the

temperatures on tuesday was just over 20 celsius in dorset at temperatures are going to rise higher than that over the next few days. this was the scene in cambridgeshire were we enjoyed a good deal of sunshine and warmth as well but with more sunshine and the wind becoming lighter and pushing away the rain, the temperatures will be rising even higher. and talking of rain there was some of that on tuesday across some western parts of the uk, wales was quite cloudy, some rain from to time. it came from that found that cloud there which was weakening, with the crowd thinned. this is the thick area of cloud which is heading northwards and taking rain across ireland, heavy rain in northern ireland earlier in the morning, spots of rain in the irish sea and it all clears up towards the north—west of scotland, allowing more and more sunshine to develop widely. the winds southerly, not as strong. it will feel warmer ina not as strong. it will feel warmer in a shade higher. 18 in the central belt. 2425 in the south—east of

england. still rain in the north—west of scotland can come back into northern ireland and the of scotla nd into northern ireland and the of scotland overnight and that tends to peter out. cloud over the irish sea, a bit misty as well. further east, those of nine or 10 degrees. that band of cloud there is a very weak weather front. it is band of cloud there is a very weak weatherfront. it is more band of cloud there is a very weak weather front. it is more a band of cloud there is a very weak weatherfront. it is more a band of cloud and even across northern ireland in scotland, that cloud should break up. still rather misty and cool across these western coasts, not quite the sunny skies here. why be getting into the high teens in scotland and northern ireland, inland england and wales, 20s, ireland, inland england and wales, 205, 26 ireland, inland england and wales, 20s, 26 possible in the south—east. that is probably the peak of the heat on thursday. the high temperatures get pushed away to central europe. we get more of an influence from the atlantique. instead of a southerly, are west to south—westerly. still warm day on friday. a lot of dry weather as well. showers coming into the north—west of scotland but some good spells of sunshine around and those

temperatures, just a little bit lower than they are likely to on thursday but still pleasant in the sunshine. still rather misty in the english channel and the north sea coasts. high pressure building in across the uk. keeping those weather fronts at bay in the time being. fine weather continues into saturday. again, some areas of misty low cloud in the morning. that you tend to break up in the morning. allowing sunshine to develop more widely. temperatures lower to the stage. still a warm one for the london marathon on sunday. i'm kasia madera with bbc world news. some breaking news: president donald trump has said he's been speaking directly with the north korean leader kim jong—un. donald trump and shinzo abe are holding high level direct talks with north korea

as they set up a meeting with kim jong—un later this year. the reports come as president trump and japan's shinzo abe are meeting in florida to discuss an upcoming meeting with the north korean leader. syria says international inspectors have been allowed into douma 11 days after an alleged chemical attack there. but the united states says inspectors are still being kept away from the site. and this story is trending on bbc.com. british pop starjessiej has won a talent competition in china, which pitches professional singers against each other. jessiej won with 48 percent of the vote. that's all from me now. stay with bbc world news. now on bbc news, it's time for hardtalk.